After successful fight against Oriental fruit fly, Sacramento County now battles Japanese beetles
Japanese beetles are small – half the size of a penny – but very hungry. Courtesy of CDFA
State and Sacramento County officials conquered one invasive pest, but another appears to be on the rise.
First, the good news: The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) has lifted the Oriental Fruit Fly (OFF) quarantine it had in place in Sacramento County. Officially over on May 31, the quarantine had been active for almost eight months and impacted parts of Rancho Cordova, Fair Oaks, Carmichael, Gold River and La Riviera.
Those restrictions were removed just in time for summer harvest season. During the quarantine, produce and plants could not be moved out of the restricted area, impacting commercial nurseries and farm stands. Residents also were urged not to take any fruit, vegetables or plants off their property.
Now the bad news: Japanese beetles – considered among the worst invasive pest – were detected in Carmichael.
On Thursday, Sacramento County posted the news on its official Facebook page:
“An invasive insect pest called the Japanese Beetle has been found in the Carmichael area of Sacramento County,” said the post. “Japanese Beetles can damage over 300 species of ornamental, horticultural, agricultural and native plants, posing a serious threat to our state’s agriculture, environment, and your backyard. Agricultural officials need your cooperation to eliminate this non-native pest.”
State and county ag officials have been actively battling Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica) around Sacramento for almost four years. Between June 4, 2020, and July 6, 2022, they trapped a total of 240 Japanese beetles in the Arden Arcade area and Rancho Cordova. Since then, a 49-square-mile detection area centered around the original findings has been monitored for more beetles and to determine if eradication efforts have been effective.
The beetle’s larvae overwinter in turf grasses, then adult beetles come out in summer to consumer just about everything in sight. These bad bugs can destroy vineyards and orchards. They go crazy over roses.
In 2023, ag officials treated a large area surrounding Del Paso Country Club and its nearby neighborhoods with such pesticides as Acelepryn and beetleGONE! (which uses Bacillus thuringiensis galleriae or BTG). (Japanese beetles love turf grass and golf courses in particular.)
This summer, officials plan to treat a neighborhood roughly bordered by Watt Avenue on the west, Montclaire Street to the east, Lynne Way to the south and French Avenue to the north.
Now, trapping and monitoring efforts will extend to other parts of the county.
“You may see State and County officials in the area setting and checking traps, conducting visual surveys, and performing treatments for Japanese Beetle,” added the county. “Please be on the lookout for these beetles in your neighborhood, in particular in rose bushes as that is a preferred host.”
Looking like little bronze scarabs, Japanese beetles are small – half the size of a penny. Other common bugs such as fig beetles and June bugs have similar green and metallic coloring but are much larger.
“Have you seen the Japanese Beetle in your area?” the county added. “If you do, please call the California Department of Food and Agriculture Exotic Pest Hotline at 1-800-491-1899.”
Also, photos of suspect bugs may be emailed to pesthotline@cdfa.ca.gov.
Learn more: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/plant/jb/
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Garden Checklist for week of Nov. 3
November still offers good weather for fall planting:
* If you haven't already, it's time to clean up the remains of summer. Pull faded annuals and vegetables. Prune dead or broken branches from trees.
* Now is the best time to plant most trees and shrubs. This gives them plenty of time for root development before spring growth. They also benefit from fall and winter rains.
* Set out cool-weather annuals such as pansies and snapdragons.
* Lettuce, cabbage and broccoli also can be planted now.
* Plant garlic and onions.
* Keep planting bulbs to spread out your spring bloom. Some possible suggestions: daffodils, crocuses, hyacinths, tulips, anemones and scillas.
* This is also a good time to seed wildflowers and plant such spring bloomers as sweet pea, sweet alyssum and bachelor buttons.
* Rake and compost leaves, but dispose of any diseased plant material. For example, if peach and nectarine trees showed signs of leaf curl this year, clean up under trees and dispose of those leaves instead of composting.
* Save dry stalks and seedpods from poppies and coneflowers for fall bouquets and holiday decorating.
* For holiday blooms indoors, plant paperwhite narcissus bulbs now. Fill a shallow bowl or dish with 2 inches of rocks or pebbles. Place bulbs in the dish with the root end nestled in the rocks. Add water until it just touches the bottom of the bulbs. Place the dish in a sunny window. Add water as needed.
* Give your azaleas, gardenias and camellias a boost with chelated iron.
* For larger blooms, pinch off some camellia buds.
* Prune non-flowering trees and shrubs while dormant.
* To help prevent leaf curl, apply a copper fungicide spray to peach and nectarine trees after they lose their leaves this month. Leaf curl, which shows up in the spring, is caused by a fungus that winters as spores on the limbs and around the tree in fallen leaves. Sprays are most effective now.
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